Adjustable compacting press with removable punch assemblies



B. B. BELDEN ETAI- 2,932,053 ADJUSTABLE COMPACTING PRESS WITH REMOVABLE PUNCH ASSEMBLIS 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 BY @HA/ugs R. TAL/WAGE April 12, 1960 Filed Aug. 231. 195e April l2, 1960 B. B. BELDEN m. 2,932,063

ADJUSTABLE COMPACTINC PRESS WITH REMOVABLE PUNCH ASSEMBLIES Filed Aug. 31. 1956 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS BYRON B. BELDEN BY CHARLES R. TALMAGE A TTORNEY April 12, 1960 B. B. BELDEN mL 2,932,063

ADJUSTABLE COMPACTING PRESS WITH REMOVABLE PUNCH ASSEMBLIES Filed Aug. 31, 1956 3 Sheets-SheetI 3 INVENToRs Brno/v' s. sa oE/v CHARLES R. TAL/MAGE United States Patent O i ADJUSTABLE COMPACTING PRESS WITH REMOVABLE PUNCH ASSEMBLIES Byron B. Belden, Hamilton, Ohio, and Charles Robert Talmage, New Canaan, Conn.; said Belden assignor to Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton Corporation, a corporation of Pennsylvania Application August 31, 1956, serial No. 607,503

6 claims. (ci. irs-16.5)

This invention relates generally to presses for compacting powdered material into various shapes such as bushings, sleeves and other shaped articles.

Many types of presses have been proposed and used for compacting such articles but they have been deficient in many structural and functional aspects. By way of example, such presses have employed expensive or cumbersome constructions, or, true alignment between the top and bottom punches and the die could not be effectively obtained in manufacture and maintained in operation.

It is an object of our invention to provide an improved compacting press that provides an improved functional relation of parts whereby a high degree of alignment of the punches and die may be readily obtained during manufacture and effectively maintained during operation.

A further object is to provide an improved compacting press in kwhich our functionally related elements are relatively simple and economical in construction and maintenance, together with having various parts easily and readily assembled or removed, or conveniently'accessible for inspection and repair, while at the same time obtaining accuracy of alignment, exibility of operation and rigidity and stability of the press structure.

Other objects and advantages will be more apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description of the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. l is a vertical section looking toward one side of the press just inside of a frame plate and taken substantially on the line 1-1 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken substantially on the line 2-2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a portion of the press viewed hom the side opposite to that of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken substantially on the line 4-4 of Figs. 2 and 3; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective of the upper punch frame.

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view of the continuation of the lower end of the press.

Our improved press includes a frame comprising two plate metal sides 1 and 2 extending upwardly for the full height of the press from a base plate 3 and cross connected by a transverse Vertical plate 4 placed substantially midway between the front and rear of the press and by a rear transverse plate 5 extending preferably for only a partial height of the press. These various members are welded together at their lines of juncture.

Mounted in the upper portion of the frame is a top punch assembly generally indicated at 6 constituting an integrated frame and punch unit which may be inserted within the main frame. This unit includes top and bottom horizontal plates 7 and 8 connected together by a vertical plate 9. The horizontal plates 7 and S are slightly less than the width between the main frame side Y 2,932,063 Patented Apr. 12, 1960 "ice plates 1 and 2 and extend inwardly short of the intermediate transverse plate 4 while the vertical plate 9, as shown in Fig. 6, overlaps the edges of the side plates 1 and 2, preferably at the front thereof, and is secured thereto by a series of cap screws 10. Bolting strips 11 are suitably welded to the inside of the frame side plates to receive the cap screws 10. The upper and lower plates 7 and 8 are also connected by vertical reinforcing plates 12 and 13 all welded together. Mounted within the frame of unit 6 is an upper punch 14 having upper and lower vertical guides one of which is a bearing 15 in plate 8. This punch has a reduced extension 16 extend-v ing to the top of the press and a sleeve 17 is rotatably journalled on this reduced extension and held in an axial position thereon against the extension shoulder by a'keeper ring 18. The sleeve 17 is adjustably threadedly connected to a piston 19 of a floating upper punch head, generally indicated at 20, preferably of the hydraulic uid pressure type. A cylinder 21 of this head has pivotal connections with links 22 and levers 23 of a punch actuating mechanism to be described later but not constituting a part of our present invention. The upper guide of the punch is formed by extending the reduced punch extension 16 upwardly through a tailrod 24 of piston 19, to be guided at 25 in the top plate 7 of the integrated unit 6.

A floating die structure, generally indicated at 28, comprises a die housing 29 welded or otherwise formed as a. part of vertical spacing plates 30 and 31 whose lower ends are connected to a horizontal lateral-support plate 32 as by bolts 33. To support this die unit for vertical floating action, there is secured to each of the outer sides of the main frame side plates 1 and 2 pairs of stationary guide brackets 34 and 35. Guide rods 36 and 37 are secured at their upper ends to brackets 38 and 39 extending laterally from and secured to the die housing 29 by suitable cap screws 40. The guide rods also extend through and are closely tted in plate 32, preferably by being press-tted therein, and are slidably guided in the upper and lower brackets 34 and 35.

A bottom punch or ejector rod 43 has adjustable threaded connection with a rotatable bushing 44 journalled in a suitable collar 45 which has pivotal connection with a lever 46 to be rcciprocated by the operating mechanism to be described later. This bottom punch is supported, similar to that of the upper punch, by upper and lower guide bearings. The lower end of the ejector rod 43 is slidably guided in a guiderhousing 47 which in turn rests upon and is secured by cap screws 48 to a at surface of base plate 3. The upper end of the ejector rod is guided by a bearing 50 which is supported upon and secured by bolts 52 to a liat surface of an intermediate crossplate 51 welded or otherwise secured to the two frame side plates 1 and 2.

A core rod 54 is connected at its lower end to a piston 55 whose cylinder 56 has constant uid pressure supplied Ito its upper end. This cylinder is an integral part of a lower and larger piston 57 whose cylinder 58 has constant fluid pressure supplied to its lower end thereby biasing the upper cylinder 56 to its uppermost position and the core rod piston to its lowermost position of cylinder 58, as shown in Fig. 7. Fluid pressure may be admitted to the top of piston 5'7 to move the same downwardly when required.

The mechanical actuation of the upper and lower punches will be described only brieliy as it does not constitute a part of the present invention. A crank shaft 60 has an eccentric for reciprocating a connecting rod 61 which is connected to the upper levers 23. A cam 62 -on thev crank shaft actuates the upper end of a link 63 a link 65 whose outer end has a fixed pivot while the lower end of link 63 is connected by a link 66 to one end of the lever 46. The groove 64 is formed in an angularly adjustable membcr67 whose pivotal axis is so positioned that it coincides with that of the roller when theV upper end of link 63 is at theV lowest point 'of Vcam 62. When the arcuate groove 64 is in a substantially vertical position the link 63 will transmit maximum movement to lever 46 and when the groove 64 is in a partial transverse position no movement will be transmitted to lever 46 by reason of the curved character of the groove. Intermediate positions will give corresponding degrees of lower punch movement. `A suitable worm sector 68 and adjustable worm 69 provide for angular adjustment of the groove 64 to any position in which it is desired to be held. The crank shaft is suitably motor driven. Y Y

In accordance with the principles embodied in our invention, it is seen that we are able to provide a press frame structure whose construction is relatively simple yet highly rugged, and that we can veryv readily and easily assemble the upper punch head 2t) with the upper punch unit frame, Fig. 3, and then place this unit between the two side plates of the main frame and secure it thereto by` attaching the supporting plate to the edges of the main frame. i Y

Our improved construction also permits accurate alignment of the upper and lower punches with the die structure 28 by employing the principle of freely supporting the die housing 29 upon horizontal support plate 32, Fig. 2, and the guide bearings 47 and 56 on their support plates 3 and 51, all before their respective holding screws 33, 52 and 4S are tapped and threaded into position.' Tosecure the desired alignment during manufacture, an

aligning rod (not shown) is then dropped down throughl the successive guide bearings and die holder to the bote tom of the press thereby automatically aligning the vari-V ous elements which, because of their unsecured sup# ported relation, can shift laterally as is necessary fo'r them to move into alignment. Thereupon the bolt holes for the various bolts dil, 52 and 33 are drilled, tapped and bolted to secure all of the component elementsV in their aligned position. If desired, do'wel holes may be drilled in the adjacent parts and dowel pins inserted after which the bolt holes would be drilled and tapped. Similarly, to get proper lateral positioning of the guide rods 36 and 37 the bolts 40 of brackets 38 and 39 will have their holes drilled and tapped after proper positioning of the guide rods. If necessary to be used in the alignment, shims may be placed beneath the bases of the guide blocks 35 and 3S and also shims may be placed between the edge of the side frames 1 and 2 and the front plate 9. The holes for bolts 1t) are then drilled and tapped to hold the alignment.

The oating die 28 is normally biased upwardly by air cylinders and pistons 7G whose piston rod is secured at 71 to the die plates 3S and 39. These cylinders are offsetV from each other as are also the guide rods 36 and 37 as is shown in the sectional view of Fig. 4. Constant air pressure is admitted to the lower ends of the cylinders 70. The lower` punch 43 may be provided with a transverse opening 72 through which a stationary bridge member 73 extends to be mounted upon plate 32 for the purpose of supporting a core rod.

The position of the upper punch may be adjusted by rotation of the threaded sleeve 1'7 and similarly the axial position of the lower punch $3 may be adjusted by rotation of the threaded sleeve 44. These adjustments allo'w any desired axial position of the top and bottom punches without in any way affecting their lengthsof stroke.

ln the initial operation of the press. the lower punch and core rod are in their uppermost o'r ejection postionwhich is ush with the top of the die. The feeder (not shown) covers the die completely whereupon thecore rod and'bottom punch are both retracted,y simultaneously Y the spaced guides of the floating die.

by admitting air pressure to the top side o'f piston 57 and exhausting pressure from the lower side thereof. While the feeder remains over the die the core rod is moved back to its normal top position. During this time the lower punch remains in its bottom position because it is mechanically controlled' by'the cam 62. The top punch is actuated by the eccentric operated connecting rod 61 which moves lever 23. As the punch enters the die, material is compacted starting in the top of the die. The compression of this material causes friction to' build up between the material and the inside of the die as well as the outside diameter of the core rod. Both the die and core rod are free to float downwardly against constant air pressure in cylinders 70 and 5S.' After the material is fully compacted, the top punch mo'ves up and the bottom punch starts to eject the article from the die. The friction that was caused by the compacting on the outside diameter Vof the core rod still exists as the bottom punch pushes Vthe part out of the die. This friction carries the core rod out with the article against the constant pressure in the upper end of cylinder 56. As the article clears the die it expands releasing the friction on the outside diameter of the core rod allowing the rod to return to its normal top position.

Where reference is made to the core rod and lower punch being in their top position during filling, it will be understood that there are times when this top position may be short of the top surface of the die.

From the foregoing disclo'sure it is seen that we have provided a relativelyrsimple and yet highly sturdy and,

compact arrangement for insuring that the upper and lower punches and die may be aligned with a high degree of accuracy during assembly of the press. It is alo seen thatrthis functional relationship for aligning purposes is accomplished by the provision of components such as the upper Vptmch frame assembly that may be readily inserted in the main press frame. This sub-assembly has the additional feature of permitting two spaced points of guidance for the upper punch and, similarly, spaced guides are also provided for the'lower punch, all of which has many cooperative advantages in conjunction with The floating die is effectively guided by rods which are placed on the outside of the press thereby insuring maximum lateral and axial stability because of relatively large moment` arms'involved and of the vertically spaced bearings. This laterally extending, externally disposed, guiding ar' rangement also provides a press frame of relatively nar# ro'w width and consequently requires a relatively small floor space.

It will, of course, be understood that various changes in details of construction and arrangement of parts may be made by those skilled in the art withoutfdeparting from the spirit of the invention as set forth in the ap,- pended claims.

We claim:

l. A compacting press comprising, in combination, aV

frame having vertically extending sides and transverse members secured thereto to form an integral main frame, the upper ends of the sides having portions projecting forwardly from the lower ends and terminating in vertical front edges; an upper punch assembly unit having a front plate and rearwardly extending horizontal plates formed as an integral sub-frame, upper and lower punch guide bearings supported by said rearwardly extending horizon tal plates, a punch mounted in said guide bearingsy and a" cured to said front edges of the forwardly projecting portions of the main frame.

3. The combination set forth in claim 1 further characterized in that the horizontal plates of the sub-frame are of less width than the distance between the inner sides of the main frame and the front plate o'f the subframe is substantially the width of the main frame, and means for removably rigidly securing the front plate of the sub-frame to the front edges of the main frame whereby the sub-frame may be adjusted inwardly or outwardly by shims placed between the front plate and the edges of the main frame.

4. The combination set forth in claim 1 further characterized in that the horizontal plates of the unit frame are of less width than the distance between the inner sides of the main frame and the front plate is substantially the width of the main frame, means for removably securing the front plate to the front edges of the forwardly projecting portions of the frame whereby the unit frame may be adjusted inwardly or outwardly by shims placed between the front plate and the edges of the main frame, and means whereby the upper and lower bearings on the horizontal plates may be laterally shifted so that the bearings may be vertically aligned with each other prior to securing the bearings in position on the horizontal plates.

5. A compacting press comprising, in combination, a frame having vertical sides with lateral openings therein, an upper punch unit supported by the upper end of said frame, a lower punch unit supported in the lower part of said frame, a oating die unit disposed between said upper and lower punches and provided with vertically spaced upper and lower arms extending laterally through said openings in the main frame, external brackets supported on the outside of said frame, and vertical guide rods extending between said lateral arms and brackets to guide the die, whereby the frame is of relatively small width and the guide rods and externally located brackets provide a relatively large guiding moment arm for the die, said die having a die housing vertically supported upon the lower lateral arms and laterally shiftable thereon to bring the die housing into alignment with the upper and lower punches whereupon the die housing and lower lateral arms may be secured together to maintain the alignment.

6. A compacting press comprising, in combination, a. frame having vertical sides with lateral openings therein, an upper punch unit supported by the upper end of said frame, a lower punch unit supported in the lower part of said frame, a lioating die unit disposed between said upper and lower punches and provided with vertically spaced upper and lower arms extending laterally through said openings in the main frame, external brackets supported on the outside of said frame, and vertical guide rods extending between said lateral arms and brackets to guide the die, whereby the frame is of relatively small width and the guide rods and externally located brackets provide a relatively large guiding moment arm for the die, said die having a housing vertically supported upon the lower one of said lateral arms and laterally shiftable thereon to bring the die into alignment with the upper and lower punches whereupon the die housing and lower lateral arms may be secured together to maintain the alignment, and the upper lateral arms being provided with vertical flanges supported against a vertical surface of the die housing whereby the aligned position of the die may be effected by provision of shims between the two vertical surfaces of the arms and die.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,766,265 Smith June 24, 1930 2,325,687 Kux Aug. 3, 1943 2,331,015 y Dawes et al. Oct. 5, 1943 2,521,625 i. Benge Sept. 5, 1950 

